Apparatus for closing and sealing cartons



H CARGILL ETAL 2,747,350

May 29, 1956 APPARATUS FOR CLOSING AND SEALING CARTONS 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Sept. 8. 1952 May 29, 1956 s. H. CARGILL ETAL 2,747,350

APPARATUS FOR CLOSING AND SEALING CARTONS 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Sept. 8, 1952 Unite States Patent APPARATUS FOR CLOSING AND SEALING CARTONS Sylvester H. Cargill, Excelsior, and William L. Harkcas. Minneapolis, Minn.; said Harlress assignor .to said Cargill Application September 8, 1952, Serial No. 308,468

4 Claims. (Cl. 53-124) This invention relates to apparatus for packing and enclosing a plurality of articles within a carton.

There are a number of packing operations where a carton having a standard depth is not adapted for e'flicient packaging of articles. An example of such a situation is where paper sheets such as advertising leaflets and the like are to be sent to various dealers and sales promotion agencies for distribution to the trade. In such cases, cartons having the same general peripheral dimensions can be used and the number of leaflets being packaged is varied for the respective shipments by varying the height of the respective piles or stacks. It would be expensive and difficult to stock the required variety of different depth cartons to permit an eflicient packaging operation to be carried out without using space consuming fillers and filling material within the carton.

It is an object of this invention to provide a new method and apparatus adapted to efificiently package a plurality of articles arranged in groups having the same general peripheral dimensions but having a wide variety of different heights or depths.

It is another object to provide novel and highly efficient apparatus constructed to enclose in closely sur rounding relation a plurality of articles grouped together and to tightly compress the end flaps of the carton directly against the articles regardless of the height or depth of the stack or pile of articles contained therein.

More specifically, it is another object to provide pressure applying apparatus adapted to securely press a plurality of stacked articles upwardly against the closed top of a carton and while retaining the compressive force thereon inverting the carton to permit the carton corners to be slit to the elevation of the material therein and form bottom forming carton flaps adapted to have adhesive applied thereto and subsequently tightly compressed against the material therein to closely surround the same without requiring any filler material whatever.

It is a further object to provide a new and improved method for packaging articles consisting in initially surrounding a stack of articles with an open topped and open bottomed carton, sealingly closing the carton top, positively pressing the stacked articles upwardly against the carton top, inverting the entire carton and contents thereof, slitting the box corners downwardly to the height of the stack therein to form bottom forming flaps and sealingly closed said flaps to form the carton bottom adjacent the bottom of the stack of articles.

Still more specifically, it is an object to provide a method for packaging articles consisting in initially stacking the articles in a group, surrounding the sides of the stacked articles with an open topped and open bottomed carton, closing the top of the carton in upwardly spaced relation above the top of the stack of articles, shifting the carton with the articles therein to a rotatable compressing mechanism, shifting the stack of articles upwardly against the closed top to elevate the bottom of the stack above the lower peripheral edge of the carton, pressing the articles securely against the closed carton top, inverting the carton with the contents compressed therein against the closed top, slitting the carton corners to form bottom forming carton flaps, closing the carton bottom and applying sealing pressure to the filled closed carton to securely press the top and bottom flaps together.

These and other objects and advantages of this invention will more fully appear from the following description made in connection with the accompanying drawings wherein like reference characters refer to the same or similar parts throughout the several views and in which:

Fig. 1 is a side elevational view of the compressing and inverting apparatus showing a carton in partially transferred position by dotted lines and in completely transferred position by full lines;

Fig. 2 is a front elevational view of my compressing and inverting apparatus showing the projectable plunger in upwardly shifted pressure applying position by full lines before rotation thereof and in partially rotated position by dotted lines;

Fig. 3 is a schematic top plan view showing a-complete production line arrangement incorporating the compressing and inverting mechanism shown in Figs. 1 and 2;

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary schematic sectional view showing the plunger in its initial lifting and compressing position Within the carton before any inverting rotation thereof;

Fig. 5 is a similar schematic sectional view showing the carton and plunger assembly in inverted position before removal of the plunger from the carton and after slitting of the corners with one of the flaps partially folded into closing position; and

Fig. 6 is a similar schematic elevational view of the carton :in inverted position with the plunger projected downwardly against the bottom forming closure flaps in closure position.

As illustrated in the accompanying drawings, We provide carton closing and sealing equipment incorporated for use in a complete production line arrangement which is best shown in Fig. 3 and consists in a stacking station or table 8 disposed adjacent a suitable conveyor mechanism such as the roller track 9 having stop means 9a at the delivery end thereof. Our carton closing and sealing equipment is located at the delivery end of the roller track 9 and is designated as an entirety by the numeral 10.

The articles to be packaged are initially stacked or piled on the stacking table 8 and a suitable reinforcing platform such as the corrugated cardboard platform 11 is disposed thereunder. When the desired number of articles such as advertising leaflets or the like have been stacked on platform 11, a carton having open ends is dropped downwardly into peripherally surrounding relation. It has been found convenient to have the top forming flaps of the carton already provided by the carton manufacturer. However, the bottom periphery of the carton is initially continuous and interconnected with no flaps formed therein. The peripheral dimensions of the reinforcing platform 11 are substantially equal to the interior peripheral dimensions of the carton and the lower edge portion of the carton receives the platform 11 therein. The stacked articles mounted on the reinforcing platform 11 and surrounded on the sides by said carton is then moved from the table 8 onto the roller track 9 .and is transferred along said track to the delivery end thereof where the stops 9a prevent further movement thereof. When the filled cartons reach this position, a second operator closes the top flaps and seals the same as by applying a quicksetting adhesive material thereto. It should be noted that in this position the top of the stack of articles within the carton is spaced a substantial distance below the closed of the articles upwardly within the carton.

top of the carton. When the top of the carton has been closed, the same is shifted over onto a reciprocated plunger 12 of the carton closing and sealing equipment 10.

The following is a description of the mechanism of the equipment 10. A suitable supporting structure such as the upstanding frame designated as an entirety by the numeral 13 is provided and furnishes a substantially rigid support for the entire mechanism. The frame 13 rests on a suitable base 14. A circular track 15 is rigidly mounted on the upstanding frame structure 13 and, in the form ShOVWl, this track is produced by cutting a large aperture from a rigid plate 16. A rotatable frame 17 has a plurality of rigidly interconnected members and is journalled in said track as by a plurality of flanged wheels 18, each having double flanges thereon. A non-reciprocable backing platform 18 is rigidly connected to the frame structure 17 for rotation therewith and forms a backing plate against which the reciprocated plunger 12 can compress the contents of a carton against the closed top thereof.

Any suitable means for forcibly projecting said plunger 12 toward the backing plate or platform 1?, such as the pneumatic cylinder and ram assembly 20, is provided. A pair of relatively long flexible hose connections 21 are connected with the assembly 20 and one of these communicates with the bottom of the double acting ram and the other communicates with the top thereof in a conventional manner. The hose connectors 21 are respectively connected to a pair of supply lines 22 and a valve 23 controls the flow of air from an intake supply line 24 to the two lines 22. When air is supplied under pressure to one of the lines 22, the ram will be forcibly projected toward the backing platform 19 and exhaust air will travel through the other line 22 and out through the exhaust line 25, best shown in Fig. 1. The actuating lever 23:! controls the position of the valve 23 and when the lever is in neutral position the valve is constructed to merely hold the plunger in stationary position.

The projectable plunger 12 is normally positioned at substantially the same elevation as the delivery end of roller track 9 to facilitate shifting of the carton with its contents over onto said plunger from the track 9. The entire carton passes through the opening or aperture in plate 16 and the reinforcing platform 11 with the lower marginal edge portion of the carton surrounding the same is moved onto said plunger 12. The plunger 12 is of proper peripheral size and shape to be received within the carton and when the reinforcing platform 11 is properly centered on said plunger the carton with the top flaps in closed position will drop down to engage the top of the stack of articles therein against the inside of said closed top flaps. The plunger 12 is then projected upwardly to engage the outer surface of said flaps against the backing plate or platform 19 and tightly press said flaps together during the setting of the glue which has been applied thereto while simultaneously compressing the stack of articles tightly against the inside of said closed top. A pivotally mounted spring pressed locking member 25 is provided to hold the rotatable frame 17 in either upright position, as shown by the full lines of Fig. 2, or in inverted position, as shown in Figs. 4 and 5.

Although the top flaps are pre-formed by the carton manufacturer, the lower peripheral edge portion of the carton is continuous in order to positively retain the stacked articles and reinforcing platform 11 in predetermined stacked relation during the shifting of the carton from packing position to closure position. Thus, when the carton drops down after centering of the platform 11 on plunger 12 and the plunger 12 is projected upwardly to tightly compress the contents against the backing plate 19 and securely hold the overlapped top flaps together, the corners of this depending portion must be slit to form bottom closure flaps and this operation can, of course, be carried out at any time after the shifting In other Words, said bottom forming flaps can be formed either before or after the carton is inverted by releasing the latch lever 25 and swinging the entire closing and sealing equipment 10 on its pivotal axis through an arc of substantially degrees. After the bottom forming flaps of the carton have been produced by slitting the corners, said flaps are folded inwardly while the compressing pressure is still being produced by plunger 12 to form break or fold lines for said bottom closure flaps. The glue is then applied to the outer surfaces of the respective flaps and the plunger 12 is removed while said flaps are closed with the carton in inverted position. Until the release of the compressive pressure at this time, the plunger remains in projected position to tightly hold the top flaps in sealed relation. Even when the plunger is removed to permit closing of the bottom flaps, the carton is in inverted position with the weight of the articles therein pressing downwardly against said top flaps so that a continuous sealing pressure is applied to said top flaps after the same have been initially pressed together. As soon as the bottom forming flaps have been folded inwardly into closed sealed relation, the plunger is again projected thereagainst to tightly press said flaps together and the glue is permitted to initially set during the swinging of the carton back into normal upright position, at which time the carton may be removed from the sealing and compressing apparatus 10. A suitable weighing scale may be provided in close association to said equipment 10 so that the package may be promptly and quickly weighed and postage applied thereto for shipping. Such a scale is designated by the numeral 26 of Fig. 3. The weight of the package will hold the bottom flaps together until the bottom glue has thoroughly dried and by the time the package is released from the sealing and compressing equipment 10 the glue for the top flaps will be thoroughly set so as to hold said flaps tightly together.

The following is an outline of the steps used in completely packaging a plurality of stacked articles. A reinforcing platform such as the corrugated cardboard platform 11 is initially placed on the stacking table 8 and the number of articles desired to be packaged are stacked thereon and an open ended carton is dropped over the articles and the reinforcing platform 11. This carton is designed with pre-cut fiaps at the top to facilitate closing the same and following the insertion of the stacked articles in the carton the top flaps are sealingly closed. The carton is then shifted onto a plunger constructed of a size to be received upwardly into the carton and shift the contents thereof upwardly against the closed top of the carton which is then tightly pressed against the packing plate 19. This of course leaves the continuous lower peripheral portion of the carton depending downwardly below the plunger platform 12 which is pressed upwardly into engagement with the reinforcing platform 11. The corners 'of the carton may be slit to form the bottom forming flaps either before or after the pivotally mounted frame 17 is rotated to invert the carton and its contents. These slits extend into the carton so that the inner ends thereof terminate adjacent the stack of articles. When the carton has been inverted, the flaps are broken along fold lines and the plunger 12 is removed to permit the flaps to be sealingly closed after application of the glue thereto and the plunger is again projected into compressing position after said bottom forming flaps have been folded into overlapped closed position with the glue applied thereto. These flaps are then sealingly closed and pressed together by the plunger and the carton again inverted back into upright position to be weighed, stamped and mailed.

It will be seen that we have provided a relatively simple yet highly ingenious and efficient method and apparatus for packaging a plurality of articles. The flexible hose connections 21 permit oscillation of the frame 17, but in the form shown, of course, require that said frame be oscillated back through the same are through which it was oscillated during inversion of the carton and its contents. This apparatus and method entirely eliminate the necessity of precisely sizing cartons as well as eliminating the requirement of filler material between the top or bottom of the carton and the contents thereof but permits the use of substantially standard depth cartons which have pre-cut flaps formed at only one end thereof and the fiaps at the bottom are formed after the carton has been filled and are cut to the exact size to closely surround the contents contained therein. By providing a carton bottom without pre-cut flaps, the marginal peripheral portion retains the stacked articles and platform in precisely stacked position and prevents shifting thereof during the transfer of the filled carton from the stacking table to the closing and sealing apparatus.

It will, of course, be understood that various changes may be made in the form, details, arrangement and proportions of the parts without departing from the scope of this invention which, generally stated, consists in the matter shown and described herein and set forth in the appended claims.

What we claim is:

1. Apparatus for Packaging a plurality of articles within a carton to tightly engage the carton against the articles on at least the top and bottom of the articles, said apparatus comprising a rigid supporting structure, a rotatable frame journalled on said structure, compression equipment carried by said frame and consisting in a reciprocated plunger and a fixed backing member rigidly fixed to said frame and mounted in opposed relation to said plunger, said plunger having a peripheral shape and size to be received within an open bottomed carton, and mechanism under the control of the operator for forcibly projecting said plunger upwardly to securely press the carton contents against the closed carton top which in turn is pressed against said backing member, said rotatable frame permitting said carton and its contents to be inverted while held between the plunger and backing member to facilitate closure of the carton bottom.

2. Apparatus for packaging a plurality of articles to tightly engage an enclosing carton against the articles on at least the top and bottom thereof, said apparatus comprising a rigid supporting structure, a rotatable frame journalled for rotation on said structure, compression equipment carried by said frame and consisting in a pair of cooperating opposed compression members, one fixed to said frame and the other mounted for reciprocating movement toward and away from said fixed member, and

controllable mechanism for forcibly projecting said reciprocating member toward said fixed member to apply pressure thereagainst, one of said members having a peripheral shape and size to be received within an open bottomed carton whereby the contents of the carton may be securely pressed against the inside surface of the closed carton top, said compression equipment tightly clamping the carton and its contents to said frame to permit inversion thereof and facilitate closure of the carton bottom.

3. The structure set forth in claim 2 and said con trollable actuating mechanism consisting in a double acting fluid-responsive ram under the control of the operator and including a selector valve for varying the direction of projection of said ram.

4. Apparatus for packaging a plurality of articles to tightly engage an enclosing carton against at least the top and bottom of the articles, said apparatus comprising a supporting structure, a circular track mounted in fixed relation on said structure and adapted to be aligned with a delivery conveyor track to receive articles Within an open bottomed carton through the opening defined by said track, a rotatable frame journalled on said track for rotation on a substantially horizontal axis, compression equipment mounted on said frame consisting in a pair of opposed compression members including a reciprocated plunger member and a fixed backing member, one of said members being of a size and shape to be received within the open bottom of the carton to shift the contents thereof upwardly against the closed top of the carton, and actuating mechanism connected with said reciprocated member and under the control of the operator for forcibly projecting said reciprocated member toward said fixed backing member and tightly clamping the carton and its contents therein, said rotatable frame mounted on said track permitting the carton and its contents to be inverted while held between the plunger and the backing member to facilitate closure of the carton bottom.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,779,985 Schroeder Oct. 28, 1930 2,066,449 Barrett Jan. 5, 1937 2,350,418 Ross June 6, 1944 2,464,099 Ross Mar. 8, 1949 2,542,083 Holstebroe Feb. 20, 1951 2,634,566 Ohrn Apr. 14, 1953 

